Ready to be heard

Tuesday

Aug 16, 2011 at 12:01 AM

Students in San Joaquin County have been returning to class since late July. And The Record has followed school district by school district a series of "firsts" for administrators, for teachers, for schools, for parents and for students. The is the fifth part in a periodic series.

By Jennie Rodriguez-Moore

Students in San Joaquin County have been returning to class since late July. And The Record has followed school district by school district a series of "firsts" for administrators, for teachers, for schools, for parents and for students. The is the fifth part in a periodic series.

TRACY - They've sat on these bleachers before.

But for the first time they assembled as seniors - the first 12th-graders at the 3-year-old Kimball High, Tracy Unified School District's newest comprehensive high school.

"I'm feeling really excited," said Jhoann Romero, senior class president. "I'm really looking forward to making the best of it."

Before starting their first period, seniors gathered at the sports stadium Monday morning for the inaugural "Senior Sunrise" assembly for donuts and a message about responsibility.

Class of 2012 by default carries the burden of setting an example for succeeding classes, said Matt Soeth, activities director and teacher at Kimball.

"Every day you're at school, all the other kids are looking at you," Soeth told the group. "They may not listen to you, but they will see what you do."

The students - who began their journey as sophomores in Kimball's first year - have already become campus leaders.

They've been responsible for laying a foundation. For creating the school's culture, starting traditions and for "showing everyone else what it's like to have school spirit," Soeth reminded them.

And the pioneering class have taken those responsibilities seriously thus far, said Cheryl Domenichelli, school principal. "Kimball kids in general are very good kids," she said.

When Kimball High opened in August 2009, the school had a mix of freshmen and sophomores who chose to start their second year of high school at Kimball.

Because some of the sophomores within Kimball's boundaries stayed elsewhere, the graduating class of 2012 is relatively small with about 350 students. In future years, classes are expected to exceed 500.

The small group - mostly from Tracy and West high schools - has formed new bonds at Kimball. Some of them say they became a family.

"We were all very diverse. None of us knew what to expect," said Romero, 17. "It's a really big step, the fact that we're all united."

Kimball, a partial construction zone in its early days, now has an outdoor sports stadium, a gymnasium and a swimming pool.

The comprehensive high school has developed three pathway programs focused on health care, architectural construction and design and communications.

The "first" seniors have become part the school's progression. They've started clubs, formed the first athletic teams and created Kimball's traditions.

"The whole group in general is just a really spirited crowd," Romero said.

This year, they'll build on their own foundation.

The students will have their first powder puff football game - junior girls vs. senior girls. They'll have their first senior prom. And they'll have their first graduation.

Ethan Nocedal, 17, can hardly wait.

"I'm excited. It feels cool to be the first seniors," he said.

Like Romero, Nocedal already has resolved to make his senior year an involved experience.

"I'm going to try to be part of a lot more school activities," Nocedal said. "It's my last year in high school. I kinda want to do it up, you know."